This studio course offers an opportunity to explore advanced biomaterials, engage with experts, collaborate with peers, and develop innovative climate solutions for water scarcity. Over the semester, we will work alongside faculty and students from the Department of Architecture, specifically within the ARCH-21ST: The Tall Building Workshop studio course. Together, we will design atmospheric water generators for tall buildings in arid regions, utilizing responsive biomaterials to transform dry desert air into liquid water.

In 2010, the United Nations recognized access to water as a fundamental human right and included it in the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 6.1). However, ensuring clean water access remains a challenge, particularly in climate-affected areas where global warming disrupts rainfall patterns, intensifies droughts, and depletes water resources. As freshwater availability declines due to environmental pressures, this project focuses on harnessing hygroscopic biocomposites and biodesign principles to support arid communities in adapting to climate change. The approach spans multiple scales, from standalone devices and installations to integrated roof and façade systems for skyscrapers.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

Clay has been used to make objects for over 20,000 years. It has unique inherent properties with a broad application of use. This course introduces students with the principals involved in the design and production of functional ceramics objects for tabletop applications and interior spaces. We will employ plaster mold-making and ceramic slip casting techniques since this is the preferred method of manufacturing ceramics for both design studios and industry. Students will design at least five distinct objects and produce multiple editions of each in response to specific project assignments. Innovation and expression will be encouraged. Each project will go through an iteration process to promote refinement of design. This course not only focuses on prototypes but also on completed glazed and fired pieces. The production variations make it possible for students to produce surprisingly refined and resolved work.

The First half of the semester will focus on two projects. The first will be the design and production of a drinking cup with handle, and the second will build on that with a larger form. We will also do an initial mold-making project to become familiar with the process and a subtractive method for model making.
The second half of the semester will be devoted to designing a collection of interrelated pieces. This will provide a chance for students to dive more deeply into form and function, build on the skills acquired during the first half of the semester and to pursue individual areas of interest. Two or more of the objects in the collection will be selected for production and then developed and refined to finished pieces.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

Play is a radical act of imagination, joy, and liberation. In this hands-on, interdisciplinary design course, students of all backgrounds will explore the power of play as a tool for social change. Using a liberatory design framework, we will center equity, co-creation, and critical reflection to design playful experiences that challenge norms, foster belonging, and inspire transformation for all ages.

Students will engage in research, prototyping, and testing as they create interactive experiences—ranging from toys and games to storytelling, movement, and immersive play. We will examine play across cultures, ages, and abilities, learning from grassroots movements, augmented realities, and kid powered creations. Through collaboration and iteration, students will develop projects that activate joy, disrupt oppression, and expand possibilities for more just and playful futures. This Industrial Design course is open to junior, seniors, and grads from RISD and Brown and encourages experimentation across disciplines. Participants must want to have fun, have curiosity for play and a commitment to social change.
 

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

This studio will explore the objects and possibilities that arise from using additive manufacturing as a method for serial production. The semester will start with a mapping of the range the current 3d printing technologies, their strength and weaknesses, and continue to speculate about the future of these technologies and their incorporation in production facilities, from the small workshop to the large factory. What kind of potentials do these technologies offer? How can they be employed to make objects different than the ones possible in traditional manufacturing? How can they be combined with other materials and methods of making to expand the range of object potentials?

This is inherently a making studio aiming for enticing tangible outcomes that allude to broader theoretical possibilities. It will incorporate learning about and testing materials, technologies, field trips, speculative scenario building and more. Final projects could be conducted in groups or individually, and their particular focus will be up to the studio participants. Outcomes could include full-scale furniture pieces, micro-objects, speculative factory plans and illustrations, prototypes of new technologies to name but a few.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

For millions of people, work takes place in shared spaces (i.e. offices) dedicated to bringing people together to pursue a shared goal. The way we experience work has constantly evolved throughout history due to technological advancements and cultural influences. The way we address work has changed with the increased awareness of the impact of work on the health of individuals, environmental change, and societal change. With the recent dramatic shift in the modality of work and intensified economic disparities brought on by the global pandemic, the world needs new experiments and explorations in how we work.

This class will investigate the past, present, and future of work. We'll examine the history, the evolution, and the changes that have taken place in the workspace. We'll redefine what work means by understanding human needs and behavioral motivations. Students will identify opportunities for current work trends and work speculatively into the future, pushing boundaries of what exists today. Students will also discuss the role and responsibility of designers to build a more inclusive and ethical future of work. This class consists of lectures, intensive research, field trips, experiments, prototyping, collective projects as well as independent projects. 

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

“In taking precautions against thieves who cut open satchels, search bags, and break open boxes, people are sure to cord and fasten them well, and to employ strong bonds and clasps; and in this they are ordinarily said to show their wisdom. When a great thief comes, however, he shoulders the box, lifts up the satchel, carries off the bag, and runs away with them, afraid only that the cords, bonds, and clasps may not be secure; and in this case what was called the wisdom (of the owners) proves to be nothing but a collecting of the things for the great thief.”
– Zhuangzi 475 BC

This class will look at design from a multitude of perspectives: tracing philosophical trajectories of design to address the idea that designers are not to be trusted; and that perhaps the very concept of “the designer” has more in common with the trickster, the pickpocket, and the sab-oteur with its ability to coax effects from the world, rather than imposing effects on it by the application of force alone. The Ancient Greeks even had a dedicated term, Métis, for this dimension of design, which is implied where extraordinary effects are elicited from unpromising materials, linking the construction of artifacts with daring military stratagems, programs of seduction, insidious courtly intrigues and even the ability of foxes and rats to evade capture and control. Through a series of design workshops, thematic design briefs, readings and (mis)readings alongside discussions from external guests this class will examine the larger cultural meanings, material context and philosophical underpinnings of design: from basic language and semiotics–to cinema and fiction–to relatively small-scale industrial products and large-scale infrastructural and ecological systems.

Learning Outcomes: Skills in applying a broader knowledge and theory to design(ing), demonstrating elastic thinking to address design problems at any scale, storytelling and presentation; film-editing, photography, art-direction and advanced concept prototyping.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

Is there a right way to design and a wrong way? In this studio, we will explore that question as we forge new paths to creativity by dissecting and rebuilding the design process itself. We will be questioning everything about how we design: purposely doing things “incorrectly”, borrowing approaches from other disciplines and drawing inspiration from other thinkers and makers, whether human, animal or plant. We will then put everything back together and test our newly minted design methodologies by creating new objects.

As a point of departure, we will explore our current design process through three experiments to test how our design process impacts our designs. In the second part of the semester, we will each build a newly constructed design process and then use it to address a concern of our choice through design. Throughout the semester, we will be working in both groups and individually, with inspiration from the Nature Lab, the RISD Museum and a few short readings.

If you want to be partners in your learning, if you are interested in both a bird’s-eye-view of design and hands-on, no-limits experimentation, this is the studio for you!

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

The environments in which we live, shop, work, relax and dine are intentionally curated to communicate a message. Whether that message is subliminal or aggressively visible, the design intent is to transform the space to tell a story, evoke a sense of calm, to energize or otherwise engage the participants. As cultures, trends and our needs change constantly, these spaces must provide the ability to evolve over time. Creating an immersive experience is built upon systems fabricated from components designed to fit together to create a space that supports products, images and information.

Designing Systems for a Bigger Scale (DSBS) will introduce the field of designing narrative environments for exhibits and retail, where multi-component systems are shipped to a location for on-site assembly. These systems create larger structures that transform environments and deliver flexibility for ease of re-use and frequent updating of images and information. Whether the application is for a temporary exhibit, retail space or for a pop-up shop, the complete design package builds the experience through the intentional use of form, materiality, graphics, signage and interactive technology.

This studio class will study current trends, use research-based analysis, problem solving, and dive into the exploration of materials and fabrication techniques that are appropriate for ease of transport and assembly of larger scale displays and exhibits.

The DSBS class activities and assigned projects will focus on creating designs that deliver a point of view and reflect a hierarchy of information. Students will have individual and collaborative opportunities to create scaled sketch models, experiment with prototypes, produce finished components, and create a full-scale self-supporting exhibit.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

In 1994 NASA held the first of what became an annual contest for universities, colleges and secondary schools from around the world. The competition, then called the “Great Moonbuggy Race,” was based on the design and engineering hurdles faced by NASA when developing the Apollo Lunar Roving Vehicle, popularly called the “Moonbuggy”. The rover was first used on the Apollo 15 mission in July of 1971 and additional rovers continued to be used for the final two Apollo missions in 1972. Since then the Rover Challenge has brought together more than 10,000 students from all over the globe to develop new skills and learn more about space exploration, design and engineering.

Organized by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville Alabama, the Human Exploration Rover Challenge (HERC) invites student teams to design, fabricate and compete on a lightweight, 2-person, human-powered vehicle, over a course that simulates many of the obstacles on the Moon or Mars. RISD’s first entry into the event, completed during the 2009/2010 academic year achieved remarkable results, finishing in third place in the college division and receiving the “Best Newcomer Award.” That first entry, designed as a part of an Advanced Design Studio, led to the creation of a club-based team – RISD Rover – to support continuing entries into the competition. This studio returns RISD Rover to its roots as a formal part of the curriculum in the ID department.

NASA describes the HERC as, an opportunity “for student teams to design, develop, build, and test human-powered rovers capable of traversing challenging terrain.” “The competition requires two students, at least one female, to use the student-designed vehicle to traverse a course of approximately one half-mile that includes a simulated field of asteroid debris, boulders, erosion ruts, crevasses, and an ancient stream bed. The challenge’s weight and size requirements encourage the rover’s compactness and stowage efficiency.”

This advanced design studio will work alongside the RISD Rover club to create a competition entry for HERC. Students in the studio will learn to design and develop composite structures, learn skills in pattern- and mold-making, discover the ergonomics of human-powered vehicles, design lightweight and efficient structures, work with carbon fiber, foam, aluminum, and other lightweight materials, all while designing an award-winning rover. At the end of the semester, the rover will be tested here at RISD, in preparation for the competition. There will be opportunities for students to travel to the Challenge to the US. Space and Rocket Center and Marshall Space Flight Center in April, to compete against rovers from around the world.Recommended Prerequisites: Good shop skills are important, Metals II is not required but recommended for this class.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

Extreme environments create extraordinary challenges to human physiological and psychological existence where common expectations for safety, comfort and performance need to be radically redefined. Putting people into unfamiliar or highly dangerous surroundings requires an extreme level of attention to design. It is not enough to design technologies, systems, or equipment that function according to basic technical specifications without incorporating the human needs of the users, the people that will interact with them.

Designing for the physical, emotional and psychological needs of astronauts may seem like an esoteric challenge but it is in situations like these that common assumptions no longer hold true and every aspect of a design must be considered in a new context. This questioning of assumptions and awareness of context are crucial for innovation in a wide array of domains. This studio uses extreme environments as a pedagogical approach to focus design on human needs and interactions, while emphasizing creativity and innovation in tightly constrained situations. 

The skills, methodologies and knowledge acquired in this studio are applicable in a broad range of domains of which aerospace is just one small subset.

This spring the Design for Extreme Environments Studio will consider how to design spacecraft and habitats suitable for extreme environments and long-duration missions, such as those to the Moon or Mars. Students will work in teams, with input from experts at NASA and elsewhere, to provide creative ideation and innovative concepts while helping create the future of space travel.

NASA’s Artemis campaign, over the next years, will explore the Moon for scientific discovery, technology advancement, and to learn how to live and work on another world as we prepare for human missions to Mars. NASA will land the first woman and first person of color on the Moon, while collaborating with commercial and international partners to establish the first long-term presence on the Moon.
This studio is funded by a grant from the RI Space Grant Consortium, Michael Lye PI, so there are no lab fees and minimal out of pocket expenses. The grant will cover these costs.

One possible short field trip - only during class times.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

Chair design is a rite of passage for those interested in the close intermingling between form and function. The exploration and moderation of these two elements will drive the challenges we undertake. In chairs, more than any other piece of furniture, the unit of measurement is the human body, and the relationship between the human form and the chair’s function must be carefully considered. There are an infinite number of chair designs for an infinite number of purposes – chairs for relaxing, working at a desk, gaming, accommodating specific disabilities, use on a plane or train, chairs designed for kids – the list goes on and on.

As designers, we must constantly ask ourselves: Who is this for? How will it be used? And where? This course balances design and shop challenges to seek answers to these three questions in an effort to develop chairs that are comfortable and structurally sound.

The goals for this course are threefold:

(1) Become more comfortable and proficient in the shops, expanding your understanding of material capabilities and limitations.

(2) Gain an understanding of chair construction dos-and don’t, learning to evaluate a chair’s strengths and weaknesses at a glance.

(3) Complete a variety of exercises and produce 2 refined and comfortable chair prototypes – a soft chair and a rigid chair.

This course will be taught through a combination of lectures, discussions, studio demonstrations, student presentations, and critiques. Topics will include user considerations, materials selection, structural integrity, comfort, upholstery, form language, the impact of and on the environment where the chair will be used, technical drawings, repeatable processes, manufacturability, finishes, and packaging. Wood II or Metals II is a prerequisite to take this course.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

This hands-on course offers students the opportunity to design cast metal objects. The Investment Casting process and result is much different than experiences students may have working with sheet metal or machined metal. Student projects scope may vary from projects that exist more on the craft side, with the development of single cast objects, or students may choose to develop castings that are a part of a larger system of non-cast components representing a consumer product. Each student will complete the course with castings produced at a local foundry. It gives students a chance to work with professionals in the field to produce castings for each student.

Design processes students engage with during the course include conducting and framing research; establishing design criteria and design drivers; explore iteration rough sketches; build CAD simulations; possibly 3D printing/CNC and or shop related mold making or fabrication processes such as working with the wax-injector and vacuum chamber in the model shop. The goal for all students will be to produce sets of wax master patterns to be provided to the foundry. After the castings are produced secondary metal work and cleanup of the raw castings will be necessary (bronze, silver, gold, possibly aluminum). As an instructor my goal is to expose students to the investment casting manufacturing process due to its sustainable qualities of producing objects that are: durable and offers the opportunity for ornate detail and complexity within metal artifacts. Typically objects with beauty and durability do not end up in the landfill as quickly as many other consumer products that don’t have these qualities.

The ID department will cover the cost of up to $100 for each student’s foundry costs. If students want to develop castings over the $100 the remaining balance would be the student’s responsibility to pay the foundry directly for those additional costs. There will be additional costs for materials depending on what students want to develop that will not be paid for by the ID department. Some of those additional costs might be for things like rubber mold kits, high resolution 3D prints, plywood for use with the CNC router and so on. It will really depend on each student’s budget and what they plan to design that could affect the cost of pre-casting design development and fabrication activities for each student.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

Rhode Island is known as the Ocean State because it is just 37 miles wide and 48 miles long, with over 400 miles of shoreline. A healthy planet needs healthy oceans, and this semester, students will use their design skills on projects focused on ocean ecology and sustainability.

This studio is inspired by the Possibility Ocean Conference, which will be held in the Spring of 2025 and hosted by Giant Shoulders and Big Dreams, two design firms founded by RISD Industrial Design Department alums.

To quote a recent article from the conference website entitled: Why Are Designers Starting An Ocean Data Conference? “As designers, our superpower is crafting a high-definition picture of a future so compelling it rallies innovators and partners to make it real. Over the past five years, we've developed brands and contributed to shaping the bluetech narrative. However, we recognize that there's still a long road ahead.

Scientific knowledge alone doesn't move the needle toward a better future. Creative perspectives, compelling storytelling, and the courage to ask audacious questions help us approach intractable problems in new ways. Real change happens when we ask audacious questions so we can discover what we don't know, spark dialogue, and shift our mindset from problems to solutions. Compelling narratives connect us to our past, present, and future. They connect us to each other and to ourselves. They are the way that we make sense of the world. At Possibility Ocean, we are gathering leaders and change-makers in Bluetech, science, finance, government, and industry to shape the innovation narrative for our ocean's future.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

Industrial Design bears the burden of planned obsolescence which are inherited strategies that ensure a product will not last in order to drive sales. The way our objects have been and continue to be made, distributed and marketed are embedded with consumerist ideas that in turn, have produced devastating environmental, social and cultural effects. The legacy of our sector has contributed to overproduction, overconsumption and a culture of rampant disposability that has led to a global waste management stream of invisible and hazardous labor conditions for people and the environment.

Electric fans cool, warm, dry, exhaust and circulate air in domestic, institutional and industrial settings. Spinning blades to move air are found everywhere from our living rooms to our laptops. As appliances and simple mechanisms, they are ubiquitous and require frequent repair and cleaning. So, how do planned obsolescence and fans connect? In this shop and theory based Advanced Design Studio, we will work with the Electric Fan as a guide to analyze and intervene in arrangements of planned obsolescence, production and disposal, maintenance, domesticity and comfort, urgency and efficiency, energy and urbanism, and beauty and function. We will learn about the use and development of electric fans in relation to the changing climate, locally and globally.

The first part of the semester’s projects is dedicated to disassembly, reassembly and experimentation introducing you to basic electronics, motor functions, physical computing, and applying strategies to design for repair in mind. We will disassemble products and systems, including manufacturing processes, industrial waste streams and learning about the people who work in these sectors.

The second part of the semester is dedicated to self-driven research, prototyping and iteration of your ideas focusing on audience and impact. We will analyze and practice methods of repair—the tangible and intangible alike—patching our tires, basic electronics, milling or printing new parts, Right to Repair policies and engaging with contemporary and historical cultures of DIY and internet-based open-source communities of practice. Our learning will happen through setting our studio culture together and developing communication and collaboration skills in individual and group projects, making in shops, and field trips within Rhode Island to apply concepts of reharvesting and repair at small and large systemic scales. Throughout the semester will be engaging with text, expressing reflections through writing, zines and discussions to develop a critical stance on sustainability and circularity and articulate how you see that applied in your own work and practice moving forward.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

MIT STUDIO teaches modern tools and methods for product design and development. Teams consisting of MIT Sloan MBA students, MIT Engineering students, and undergraduate RISD Industrial Design students conceive, design, and prototype a physical product over the course of the semester. An "alpha prototype" is presented by each team at the end of the course.

Project ideas come from the students in the class and are rated (by students) for potential. The most promising opportunities (rated by student interest) will be used to form project teams for the remainder of the semester. Each team will be allocated a $1000 budget for product development. The course is generously supported by a small number of sponsors, who may also suggest one or more project opportunities for your consideration.

The class is primarily intended for seniors in Industrial Design and is jointly taught by RISD faculty Heewon Lee and MIT faculty; Prof. Steven Eppinger and Prof. Maria Yang. The first half of each class session will generally be in lecture and discussion format, and the second half will be used for project team meetings and consultation with faculty. 

NOTE: Lectures are held on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons at MIT Sloan in Cambridge MA. This class requires students to travel to Cambridge twice a week for the semester. Transportation costs outside of the Add/Drop period are covered by RISD for MBTA Commuter Rail and T-Subway System.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

Graduate Thesis Communications II is a studio course run in parallel with our sibling studio course which focuses on completing your thesis. Together, we will spend the spring semester finishing the thesis and thesis book that you proposed at the end of Graduate Thesis Communications I. We continue to think about writing as a design tool and as a communication tool. For this course, we put more emphasis on the communication aspect. Together, we will continue to refine and strengthen the manner by which you explain your thesis to yourself and others. We will think about audience, voice, structure, and form. We will explore different ways of communicating the same idea in different contexts and mediums (visual, oral, written). We will examine how to share our work and with whom. At the end of the course, you will have a complete thesis.

Enrollment is limited to Graduate Industrial Design Students.

Major Requirement | MID Industrial Design

Graduate Thesis Communications II is a studio course run in parallel with our sibling studio course which focuses on completing your thesis. Together, we will spend the spring semester finishing the thesis and thesis book that you proposed at the end of Graduate Thesis Communications I. We continue to think about writing as a design tool and as a communication tool. For this course, we put more emphasis on the communication aspect. Together, we will continue to refine and strengthen the manner by which you explain your thesis to yourself and others. We will think about audience, voice, structure, and form. We will explore different ways of communicating the same idea in different contexts and mediums (visual, oral, written). We will examine how to share our work and with whom. At the end of the course, you will have a complete thesis.

Enrollment is limited to Graduate Industrial Design Students.

Major Requirement | MID Industrial Design

This class will cover basic camera optics and lighting techniques necessary to generate high quality digital images for either print or digital portfolio applications. The focus of the class is to master manual controls on the digital camera such as film and shutter speed settings in conjunction with aperture openings to obtain whatever the desired effect might be to best represent two and three-dimensional objects. Manipulation of natural and artificial lighting is the other main focus of the class. Students will learn the use of fill and bounce cards with sun, tungsten and strobe light sources. The emphasis will be on the strobe lighting studio where through a series of assignments students will learn direct, diffused reflected lighting techniques. Students will be required to participate in the final critique during the final week of the semester.

Elective

This class will cover basic camera optics and lighting techniques necessary to generate high quality digital images for either print or digital portfolio applications. The focus of the class is to master manual controls on the digital camera such as film and shutter speed settings in conjunction with aperture openings to obtain whatever the desired effect might be to best represent two and three-dimensional objects. Manipulation of natural and artificial lighting is the other main focus of the class. Students will learn the use of fill and bounce cards with sun, tungsten and strobe light sources. The emphasis will be on the strobe lighting studio where through a series of assignments students will learn direct, diffused reflected lighting techniques. Students will be required to participate in the final critique during the final week of the semester.

Elective

This class will cover basic camera optics and lighting techniques necessary to generate high quality digital images for either print or digital portfolio applications. The focus of the class is to master manual controls on the digital camera such as film and shutter speed settings in conjunction with aperture openings to obtain whatever the desired effect might be to best represent two and three-dimensional objects. Manipulation of natural and artificial lighting is the other main focus of the class. Students will learn the use of fill and bounce cards with sun, tungsten and strobe light sources. The emphasis will be on the strobe lighting studio where through a series of assignments students will learn direct, diffused reflected lighting techniques. Students will be required to participate in the final critique during the final week of the semester.

Elective